Should businesses support Linux?

Image credit: AP Photo/Fabrice Coffrini

Businesses today support Windows. Many also support Mac OS X. Should businesses also support Linux?

The answer is that most already do—at least in some form. Look closely in the corporate data center and you're likely to find Linux servers. Often you will see rack after rack loaded with Linux servers. Industrial Light and Magic's (ILM) data center in the Letterman Digital Arts Center in San Francisco's Presidio, handles their special effects image rendering on banks of Linux-based servers.

Even if you don't find Linux in the data center you will probably find it's big brother Unix. IBM AIX servers, very commonly found in data centers, are Unix based. True, a few data centers are Windows only, but outside of Microsoft's data center (and we're not completely sure about that) most are not. And let's not forget Apple Xserve product line. Yes, it's Unix-based as well.

Linux in the data center may be fine, but what about supporting Linux at the desktop? Some companies do support a number of Linux variants for desktop PCs and laptops. Some even support Unix and don't know it. After all, you can consider Apple OS X as largely Unix in disguise.

Supporting yet another Operating System can be challenging for desktop support IT groups. Given today's constrained resources, they already have their hands full with Windows, and perhaps Mac OS X. Now users want to add Linux in its various flavors to the arsenal. What is a good desktop support technician to do?

Learn Linux is probably the answer.

Despite the FUD (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt) spread about by those who look askance at Linux, learning Linux support is not an impossibly difficult task. Agreed that Linux is different in many ways from Windows and OS X, but that doesn't necessarily make it harder. In my limited experience, I've found Linux to require a bit more "getting under the hood" work, but that can be a good thing. Because it allows users to open up the hood, so to speak, Linux doesn't lock the qualified support person out of its innards as some Operating Systems are prone to do. And frankly, using the Terminal application in Linux is not all that different from using the DOS command prompt in Windows or, for that matter, the Terminal utility in Mac OS X. Sure, the commands are different, but a CLI is, well, a CLI.

Are there advantages that Linux offers businesses? Yes, there are. All else being the same, Linux can be less costly to implement. (Dare we say "free"—probably not in the case of a business implementation.) Linux is stable, flexible and powerful. It's reported to be less prone to exploits and compromises than Windows (although don't relax too much.) Plus variants such as Ubuntu Wubi allows users to have Linux installed on their desktops without giving up Windows—a definite plus for many business users.

Clearly, Linux should be considered for businesses right alongside of Windows and, yes, Mac OS X. Choices are a good thing in business.